Dominic Harris

The Morpho Helena butterfly, native to the rainforests of Central and South America, is celebrated for its striking blue colour, a result of microscopic scales on its wings that reflect and refract light. In Metamorphosis Solo - Morpho Helena, Harris delves deep into the butterfly’s structural complexity, capturing its ethereal beauty in a work that transforms as it is viewed. Using his signature hand-painting technique on a digital tablet, Harris meticulously layers colours and textures to recreate the hypnotic iridescence of the butterfly's wings.

The piece invites viewers to experience the delicate balance between order and chaos that exists in nature. The butterfly’s iridescent scales, rendered with painstaking detail, shimmer and shift as if alive, evoking a sense of movement and transformation. This dynamic interplay is central to Harris’s artistic approach, encouraging viewers to engage emotionally with the artwork, reflecting on their own perceptions of beauty and change.

Dominic Harris has long been fascinated by the intersection of nature and technology, a theme that has shaped much of his oeuvre. The Morpho Helena butterfly has been a recurring symbol in his work since his 2011 breakthrough piece Flutter, which marked the beginning of his exploration into the digital representation of natural phenomena. Over the years, Harris has continued to develop and refine this approach, using digital tools to create interactive and immersive experiences that bridge the gap between the organic and the technological. The dynamic, participatory experience is a hallmark of Harris’s work, underscoring his belief in the power of art to evoke emotional responses and inspire introspection.

In Metamorphosis Solo - Morpho Helena, Harris pushes the boundaries of scale and detail, offering an unprecedented level of intimacy with the butterfly’s intricate form. This piece builds on his previous explorations in works like Spectrum (2024) and Metamorphosis: The Solos (2020), where butterflies served as symbols of perpetual motion and transformation. The butterfly, a universal symbol of change, serves as a metaphor for the transient and ever-shifting nature of life itself. Here, the Morpho Helena takes centre stage once again, but on a larger scale, allowing viewers to experience its beauty in new, deeper ways.

As with his previous works, Metamorphosis Solo - Morpho Helena offers a compelling vision of the future of art, one in which the lines between the digital and the natural blur, and where transformation—both of the subject and the viewer—lies at the heart of the experience.

In Metamorphosis Solo - Morpho Helena, Dominic Harris has created not just a work of art, but an immersive, nuanced journey that invites viewers to look closer, engage more deeply, and reflect on the beauty that exists all around us.